Lauren Maier
Artist | Student | Photography

United States

I have had a love for photography for as long as I can remember, and it is only getting stronger with time and the things I am fortunate enough to see. I started out photographing flowers; simply because they were available. I was 10 so I couldn't drive anywhere, and they didn't move when I got close to them with my little point and shoot fuji-film.

Now five years later I have a trusty Pentax DSLR, several different sizes of lenses, a tripod and a monopod, filters, a camera bag that could survive a fall from the peak of Everest and a driver's license that takes me all over the lovely state of Wisconsin. In that time my photography has expanded from daisies in my mom's garden, to lake Superior's shores, wild birds of all shapes and sizes, and admittedly still the beautiful variety a flowers in my mom's (and our neighbor's) gardens.

Over time I have taught myself the importance of what Thomas Mangelsen calls the three key things to photography: patience, lighting, and behavior. I have many inspirational photographers to look up to including Tom Mangelsen, Nate Zeman, Paul Raymaker, and Jess Findlay.

I have never gotten into portrait photography. I just don't like posing my subjects in a studio. The natural world and natural lighting holds more than enough beauty for me! (I am still a bit afraid of my flash)

To me photography is something so much more than a picture and a piece of paper; it's a story, with a feeling and a life. It's all about the image behind the photo. To me the journey to get there and see that thing, at that exact moment, and click the shutter is what it's all about. It sends a rush of adrenaline through my veins when I know I got that perfect shot. It's my hope that I am able to pass on even just a fraction of that awe that I feel when I see that thing with my photography to the viewer.

The thing that most drives me is the knowledge that I can get the feeling of absolute serenity through photographing a robin in my back yard, I can only imagine what it will feel like photographing the mountains in China, the beaches of Australia, or the farms of Ireland. It is a dream and a passion I will never give up.

"Once photography enters your bloodstream, it's like a disease." ~ Anonymous

Please visit my website to browse or purchase!

www.laurenmaierphotography.com/